W&M Law Clinic for Veterans to Be Named for Puller

By WYDaily Staff Wednesday, November 10, 2010

The public is invited to attend a ceremony to announce the naming of the Lewis B. Puller, Jr. Veterans Benefits Clinic to be held in the lobby of William & Mary Law School on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, at 1 p.m. Speakers at the ceremony will include U.S. Senator Mark R. Warner. Members of the Puller family will attend, including Linda Todd “Toddy” Puller, who represents the 36th district in the Senate of Virginia. The ceremony will feature remarks by law students involved in the clinic and veterans helped by the clinic.

“Lewis B. Puller, Jr. embodied the courage and strength of our young soldiers. In his memory, the Lewis B. Puller, Jr. Veterans Benefits Clinic will be here to serve those who, like Lewis, served our country so faithfully. We are proud to be able to honor one of our own on November 11, and to have the opportunity to express our profound gratitude to the Puller family,” said Law School Dean Davison M. Douglas.

Lewis B. Puller, Jr. (1945-1994) was the namesake of the most highly decorated Marine in history, Gen. Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller. Puller, Jr. was an attorney, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, and an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. After graduating from the College of William & Mary in 1967, he joined the Marines. He was sent to Vietnam as a second lieutenant in 1968, where he was badly wounded when he tripped a booby-trapped Howitzer round.

He lost both of his legs and most of his fingers in the explosion. The shell that hit him left his body riddled with shrapnel, and he hovered near death for days. He survived, and was medically discharged from the Marine Corps. During his short active-duty career, Puller earned the Silver Star, two Purple Hearts, the Navy Commendation Medal and the Vietnam Cross of Gallantry.

Puller came home to Virginia and his wife, Linda Todd “Toddy” Puller and their two children, Lewis III and Maggie. He attended William & Mary Law School, graduating in 1974. He made an unsuccessful bid for a Democratic congressional seat in 1978, hoping to represent eastern Virginia. Throughout the ensuing years Puller battled depression and alcoholism, undergoing treatment in 1981.

Ten years later, Puller told the story of his life in a book titled "Fortunate Son." The moving, stark portrayal earned him the Pulitzer Prize in 1992 for autobiography/biography.

In 1993, Puller returned to Vietnam, looking for ideas and ways to both honor and give back to the people who had lost so much during that war. He and several others, like journalist, fellow veteran and former hostage in Lebanon Terry A. Anderson, and actress Kieu Chinh, decided the best monument they could build would be schools for Vietnamese children. Today, 58,000 children are taught in 41 schools throughout Vietnam, including the Lewis B. Puller, Jr. School in Dong Ha, the capital of Quang Tri Province on the former demilitarized zone.

Despite a trying and triumphant life, Puller took his own life in 1994.

The Veterans Benefits Clinic accepted its first clients in January 2009. William & Mary law students working under the supervision of Adjunct Law Professors and retired JAG officers Stacey-Rae Simcox and Mark D. Matthews help veterans with their claims for benefits while students and faculty at Virginia Commonwealth University's Center for Psychological Services and Development provide assessment, counseling and referrals to veterans in need of those services.

The clinic’s work is made possible, in part, by the support of the Jessie Ball duPont Fund and members of the William & Mary Law School Class of 1974. In addition, the Virginia Bar Association announced Nov. 4 its Veteran's Initiative is urging law firms to sponsor fundraisers to benefit William & Mary’s Veterans Benefits Clinic. The VBA Veteran's Initiative seeks to educate attorneys about veterans’ legal needs and to enlist attorneys to provide assistance to veterans on a pro bono or reduced fee basis.